The Wedding Day
by Enheduanna of Ur
Summary: It's Bellatrix's wedding day, and the Black sisters are busily getting ready. Some last-minute reminisces and conflicts. What do the sisters say to each other on their last day as a trio? Narrated from Andromeda's POV and rated T just in case.
1. Andromeda and Narcissa

Andromeda stared out the window of her room, staring moodily at the rain pelting the glass. The dark violet bridesmaid dress lay on the bed behind her, purposely ignored as she sat on the window seat rather than getting dressed.

_We have plenty of time,_ she mused as she stared at the droplets of water streaming down. _The wedding isn't for, like, three hours. Must we get ready this early?_

Her mother Druella always liked to be early. Perfectly punctual, crisply clean, and habitually haughty, that was her mother. Andromeda's two sisters, one older, one younger, took after her in this fashion.

Well Narcissa did, anyway. Bellatrix had the haughty part down pat, but she wasn't a neat freak like Druella, and she was only punctual when she absolutely had to be. A slight smile came to Andromeda's face when she thought of how Bellatrix had to be shaken awake on the day of her own wedding.

Bellatrix didn't like getting up early.

Andromeda was fond of her sisters, but sometimes she didn't understand them. Didn't they ever want to defy tradition, disregard the strict rules and ordinances their parents laid down for them? Andromeda hadn't really thought about it until last year, when she turned fourteen. She wasn't a rebel child, but she did wonder sometimes if everything her parents said was absolutely true...

Of course, she was being a bit rebellious in her choice of dating Ted. But no one in the family needed to know that. Andromeda didn't consider it rebellion as much as, well, following her heart. It wasn't fun to disobey her mother's and father's orders, but this was a situation where it had to be done.

The door flew open, snapping the young woman out of her thoughts.

It was Narcissa, her thirteen year old sister. Andromeda sighed a bit at the sight of her little sister, blonde and slight and gorgeous for her age. The dark violet dress made her even more beautiful. Andromeda was nice-looking, but her beauty paled before her little sister's and she knew it.

It would be untrue to say that Andromeda was not jealous of Narcissa. After all, she was the beauty of the family, though all the Black sisters were pretty. Andromeda and Bellatrix shared a darker beauty inherited from their mother, the dark eyes and curls, the strong jawline and the toned yet slim build. Narcissa was like their father, though, pure blue eyes and blonde waves, a delicate oval face and a little lithe body. She was the family angel. The favorite by a mile.

But Andromeda was not jealous to the point of meanness. She was usually kind, if distant from her little sister. She knew that Narcissa had no more control over her looks, or how much her parents liked her, than Andromeda or Bellatrix had. She also knew how tiresome Narcissa grew of being the baby, the angel whose cheeks they pinched, the delicate little thing they never let have any fun.

"Hey Cis, need something?" Andromeda asked.

"I need an opinion. Should I wear amethyst jewelry with this dress, or is that too much purple?" Narcissa asked. She was excited for this wedding: it showed in the way her blue eyes sparkled and she bounced a little on her heels. Then she noticed that her sister wasn't dressed. "You better get in that dress or Mum's gonna be in here after you." she said.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm on it."

Andromeda rose from the window seat and held the dress up in front of the mirror. It was very pretty, kind of billowy and silky. She slipped out of her casual robes and put on the dress. Narcissa zipped it up for her, adjusting it over Andromeda's shoulders. It was meant to go low on the shoulders, sitting on the upper arms, but it wasn't low cut.

The color was good on Andromeda. Purple had been her favorite color as a child, and her mother had favored it too. Druella used to dress her in it a lot, saying it was too dark for Bellatrix but went perfectly with Andromeda's brunette locks. (Bellatrix hadn't minded, declaring she didn't want to wear girly purple anyway. She'd been such a tomboy). Ted liked her in purple. It highlighted her brown eyes.

Narcissa smiled. "You look lovely, 'Dromeda."

"You look prettier in it, just ask Mum," Andromeda snickered.

"Oh god, don't ask Mum please. She can be so critical sometimes, I have no idea why she's so fond of me and not you or Bella. You don't take her seriously, do you?" Narcissa asked, a slight frown clouding her face.

"Oh, no. I know I'm not as pretty as either you or Bella, and Mum cares about me, just she doesn't always think before she talks. You get some of her criticisms too, and so does Bella."

"Not as much as you. It isn't fair, you know."

Andromeda smiled. "Don't worry about it. I know how to handle her."

"Well, in any case, she won't find anything today. You look wonderful."

Andromeda grinned. Narcissa had good fashion sense, and Andromeda could tell the compliment was sincere. She held on to it, knowing Druella would criticize some aspect of her appearance later, and she wanted to feel beautiful today. Her mother's comments about her looks did indeed hurt her feelings, but she had grown generally immune to them. And she knew her mother loved her, despite her devotion to appearances and sharp tongue.

When Andromeda was a child, Druella used to say that Andromeda looked like a washed-out, smaller version of Bellatrix. This had always hurt her feelings, but Bellatrix had fiercely denied their resemblance, both to assert her independence and to console her little sister. It sort of helped, but Andromeda knew Bellatrix had been fighting a losing battle from the beginning: for many years they could have passed for twins. Maybe that was why those two were closer, while Narcissa was left out.

"Thanks Cissy. You too," Andromeda said. "And yeah, don't wear amethysts. Too much purple. Let's wear pearls, shall we?"

Andromeda didn't really get along with her little sister. It was Bellatrix who was her favorite, the one she trusted. Narcissa had always been too flighty and airy for Andromeda to befriend. But she could be pleasant sometimes, and was generally trustworthy. The baby of the family had never understood her parents' favoritism because she had always seen herself as equal with her sisters. Andromeda had always liked her for this. Bellatrix had never thought anything of it, assuming her parents liked her better because she _was _better.

Andromeda had thought for many years that she was inferior to her sisters. She did not remember a time before she suffered from low self-esteem. It was only when she went to Hogwarts that she grew more confidant. She met new friends who were surprised by her mental image of ugliness and foolishness. For indeed, Andromeda Black was a pretty and smart girl. She just hadn't known it for so long.

Equality is such a rare thing in the pureblood society. It's all about position and who's above whom. Maybe Narcissa was just naive, but it seemed to Andromeda that maybe everyone in her family could learn a lesson from Narcissa.

Narcissa seemed to look up to the middle sister more than she did the eldest. _Perhaps Bellatrix is too wild for our gentle Cissy,_ thought Andromeda.

"Mum won't stop bugging me," said Narcissa darkly. "She picked out my shoes and wanted to do my hair too, but I told her I could do it without help. It's Bella who needed help with her hair. She slept on it wrong and it's all over the place."

"Isn't it always?" chuckled Andromeda as she thought of her older sister's tangled locks. Bellatrix generally had quite a time getting it to behave. It was curly as a bedspring and had been the exasperation of Druella Black for many years. When Andromeda was seven and Bellatrix nine, her mother had told them both that though Bellatrix was the prettier child, her hair was nowhere as nice as Andromeda's, which was more mildly curly and softer to the touch. Andromeda had been flattered but worried about her sister's feelings, remembering her own desolation when Druella has compared her daughters' looks in favor of the elder one.

She needn't have worried. Bellatrix hadn't been sad. She'd simply decided her mother was right, that it was too much of a hassle, and had chopped it off so short she looked like a boy. Druella had been furious, had yelled for what seemed like hours, but their father Cygnus had laughed until he cried, and the two girls had too. Bellatrix loved her hair that short, for it had been out of her way and easy to keep untangled. She'd managed to keep it that way for a whole summer before her mother magically made it grow back. Druella had never commented on Bellatrix's hair again, much to everyone's relief. Bellatrix sure had been a funny child...

The two Black girls stared at themselves in the mirror, smiling. They didn't really look anything alike, but they matched in the dark purple. Andromeda felt a strong fondness for her baby sis.

They retrieved the pearl chokers from a small jewelry box on Andromeda's dresser, put them on, and walked out into the hall to check up on their older sister.


	2. Bellatrix and Andromeda

Thankfully, Bellatrix had not gone back to sleep like Andromeda had suspected she would. Their mother Druella was in there with her, fixing her eldest daughter's black curls up on her head in an elegant cascade. Some curls were left to frame her face, which was expressionless. Bellatrix's dark eyes were fixed on her reflection in the mirror, absent of emotion.

"Good choice on jewelry, girls. Bella's wearing pearls too. Andromeda, you look lovely dear. The flowing dresses cover up how dreadfully skinny you are, you know. You ought to wear them more often."

"Thanks, Mum," Andromeda said, rolling her eyes so that only Narcissa could see. The blonde quickly stifled a giggle.

_She's just tired_, Andromeda thought, seeing Bellatrix's blank face. _She's happy. She's excited. Just tired. It's her wedding day, after all._

But deep down, Andromeda knew that her older sister wasn't excited. Today was just another day for her. Except for Narcissa, the family was just pretending that it was a day for celebration.

Truthfully, that was why Andromeda was in a melancholy mood today. She cared about her sister and didn't want this for her. From the day Bellatrix had met the mildly handsome man, Andromeda knew Bellatrix was planning to marry him. He was wealthy, had connections with powerful people and, most importantly, was pureblooded. Bellatrix had known she would have to be married soon, so she turned the charm on Rodolphus Lestrange, son of her father's friend, when she was only sixteen.

Bellatrix had never intended to marry for love. This was another thing Andromeda didn't understand about her. Andromeda wanted love, more than she wanted wealth or tradition. A part of her resented her older sister, her early role model and most trusted confidant, for doing this.

"Bella, come here, love."

Druella spoke lovingly, most unlike her usual sharp tone. She held up a wedding dress, a beautiful confection of creamy white silk that looked very old fashioned but clean and well-kept. She helped her daughter step into it and do up the numerous buttons on the back. It was tight at her waist, but fuller in the skirt, and went to the floor. The top was like the bridesmaids' dresses, sleeves draping onto her upper arms. The creamy color accented Bellatrix's fair skin and dark hair and eyes wonderfully. She looked like a princess.

"This dress," Druella said softly, fastening an pearl choker around Bellatrix's throat, "was my wedding dress, my mother's before me, and so on for eight generations. We have taken care of it all these years, and every Black family bride has worn it since Ophelia Black made it herself so long ago. It is a treasure."

"Yes, Mother," Bellatrix murmured. "It is beautiful."

"I'll be in my room getting dressed. Try not to crumple the dress too much. I won't be long. We'll Apparate there as soon as your father and I are ready."

She strode out of the room, leaving the three sisters alone together.

"Oh Bella, you look absolutely stunning! Like a perfect bride!" Narcissa immediately gushed, her sweet smile lighting up her face. Bellatrix smiled a little at Narcissa's expression.

"Thanks Cissy. You and 'Dromeda look lovely too," she said sincerely.

"It's not too late to back out of this, you know."

Andromeda had spoken, and Narcissa turned to her, stunned. Bellatrix's heavily lidded eyes narrowed a little, and an awkward air seemed to invade the room.

"Of course it's too late to back out; I already said yes. The wedding is paid for and arranged, and we have a nice house picked out. It's too late to back out." said Bellatrix nonchalantly. She began to fix her veil over her curls.

Narcissa stared at them, shocked. "But, don't you love him? Rodolphus?"

Bellatrix only laughed softly, not her usual peals of laughter but a sarcastic chuckle, almost. Andromeda looked at the blonde girl and shook her head.

"It's wrong, you know," said Andromeda to the bride beside her. "It's not right to marry someone you don't love."

"Well it's expected to marry well, so I'm going through with it." she responded.

Anger rose in the dark haired bridesmaid. _This isn't fair!_ Her older sister, everything she had looked up to as a child, was throwing away her heart in this loveless marriage. She was going to end up like their mother, cold and uncaring with her spouse. Rodolphus would probably do the same.

"Bellatrix Lestrange. It sounds so much longer than Bella Black, but that's alright. Now that I'm a respectable married woman, it's fine to have a long name, I suppose. Long names are kind of regal, don't you think, Cissy?" Bellatrix asked.

Narcissa nodded, but it was Andromeda who spoke. "Bella, you are throwing your life away with this. You need to listen to reason, and not just what Mum and Dad have been telling you." she said flatly.

Bellatrix turned to face her little sister, the familiar anger blooming on her face. "This is the last time I'm going to repeat myself. It's expected."

"Well, _I_ expect you to stand up for yourself, and your freedom." Andromeda said, her voice rising.

"I've made my choice."

Andromeda didn't stop. "You're so young. Seventeen. You don't know what you're doing."

"I know what's best for myself and my family!" shouted Bellatrix, her anger spilling over. She drew much too close to Andromeda, who didn't back down. "I'm going to uphold our family's position and status! You're the one who doesn't understand. I wanted to marry Rodolphus and now I am. It's a chance only a fool would pass up."

Bellatrix stopped suddenly, composing herself unexpectedly. "This dress crumples so easily, I have to remember to move gracefully." she said, smoothing the material with her hands. "You know, you would do well to marry the younger Lestrange brother Rabastan."

Andromeda moved away, disgusted. "Those are Mum's words, not yours. It's making me sick, really is."

"What makes me sick is watching you date that Mudblood Tonks."

Andromeda gasped. Bellatrix knew? _What?_

"But..." she stammered. "What...? How-"

"Oh, I know about it," Bellatrix hissed. "Tonks told his friend Longbottom, who told his girl Alice Prewett. Blood traitors, the both of them, but Alice's older sister Rosamund was a housemate of mine and has a shard of respect, unlike Alice. She wormed the truth out of Alice and told me, would've told Mum and Dad, but I stopped her. I felt like giving you your chance. Figured you'd come around eventually."

Narcissa was gaping. She'd sensibly kept quiet this whole time but couldn't contain herself now. "You're dating a _Mudblood_? _What?_"

Andromeda rounded on her. "You will not tell our parents, or I will tell them about you and that Malfoy boy snogging in the train compartment last month, coming home from school."

That silenced Narcissa pretty well. Black girls were expected to be ladylike and proper, not to be snogging boys in train compartments. Andromeda and Bellatrix had been getting away with things like that for years, but their parents were harder on Narcissa for some reason. Perhaps because she was the prettiest, their favorite. The little angel. In any case, the little angel shut her mouth.

"Don't fret, 'Dromeda," the eldest Black sister drawled. "I haven't told them so far; I don't intend to tell them now. If you get serious about him, though, or if you don't do what I say, then I will. So you are going to listen to me now, and stop bothering me about my to-be husband."

Andromeda shook where she stood. She was being practically blackmailed, and there was nothing she could do. She gazed at her sister, her beautiful, young, smart sister that looked so much like her. Her sister who didn't understand anything about her anymore. It felt like a betrayal, a gap too wide to fix.

Bella Black had been a smiling, headstrong girl, with skinned knees and a smirk that both terrified and drew in the boys. She'd been demanding, sort of rude, and fun. A daredevil, and a protective older sister.

Bellatrix Lestrange was a woman with a smile that mocked. A woman with mean eyes and mean words, who married for money and was quick to curse anyone who disagreed with her. She didn't listen, she didn't understand. She wasn't going to be there for her sister Andromeda anymore, and would never understand the choices Andromeda knew she would have to make.

She'd changed.

"There was a time, you know," Andromeda whispered, "When we were sisters. Truly so. Remember? Or have you forgotten that too?"

They stared at each other. Perhaps it was a trick of the light, thought Andromeda, but did Bellatrix seem regretful?

The illusion passed as quickly as it had come, and the bride's stare became hateful once more. "I don't miss that time." she said coldly.

Andromeda stormed out of the room.


	3. Narcissa and Bellatrix

Andromeda stood in the hallway, fuming, holding back tears. She paced the carpeted floor, replacing the good memories of Bellatrix with the bad ones. How she often mocked Andromeda in a horribly annoying baby voice, how she'd always take Andromeda's things without asking and give them back in awful condition, and how she would push Andromeda about and pull her hair. Once, she'd shoved Andromeda down a flight of steps and broken her arm. It was easily fixed but painful nonetheless. Bellatrix had laughed herself to tears...

Andromeda heard voices from the room she'd just left. In spite of herself, she pressed her ear against the crack in the door to listen.

"Oh my god, really? A Mudblood? I can hardly believe it," came Narcissa's voice in a hushed tone.

"She'll come around. She's a Black after all. We may stray, but we don't betray our families. 'Dromeda's not stupid."

"Bella?" said Narcissa.

There was a pause. "Yes," Bellatrix answered.

"Do you really not love Rodolphus? Does he know this?"

Andromeda could picture the weary look on Bellatrix's face. She heard the sigh. "No, I don't. And yes, he knows. We've talked about it."

Narcissa said in disbelief, "What did he say?"

"He said he doesn't love me either, but that it's a good match and that I'm a good woman for him to be married to. We aren't total strangers, we are good friends, really. He makes me laugh sometimes. Just... We don't love each other in that way. We're going to be respectful acquaintances, and if we learn to love each other, so be it. We aren't awkward with each other. We've kissed, it's not bad. I think it'll work out."

"What about..."

"What?" Bellatrix said, a trace of amusement in her voice. "Sex?"

"Um. Yes." Andromeda could practically see the blush on Narcissa's pale cheeks. Narcissa blushed easily.

"We'll try it. If we like it, we'll continue. If not, we won't. Simple." mused Bellatrix. "We are going to allow each other a little room in this marriage for other people. If we find them."

Narcissa laughed. "Mutual cheating?"

"Call it what you will." Bellatrix said, laughing as well.

Pressed against the door, Andromeda felt a twinge of jealousy that her sisters were laughing and she was not in there with them. She was not included. But she shook it off and listened, for they were talking again.

"Bellatrix Black, what in heaven's name is that?"

Andromeda's eyes widened, for, though Narcissa had spoken, it was in the voice of their mother Druella. And that voice was a stern one indeed.

"Nothing Cissy." came the curt reply.

"Don't lie to me."

"Good God, you sound like Mum."

"_Bella!"_

There was a rustle of the silken gown. Andromeda was confused, and pressed even closer. It sounded like they were struggling. Now, Narcissa was no match for Bellatrix in any type of fight, but Bellatrix was clad in a wedding gown that restricted her movements greatly.

There was a gasp from Narcissa and a groan from Bellatrix.

"Please give me my glove back." Bellatrix said coolly. Her gloves matched the dress, and went to her elbows. _Why on earth had Narcissa taken her glove?_

"Oh my goodness..." Narcissa murmured. "Is that...?"

"It's a Dark Mark, don't touch it," Bellatrix snapped. "It hurts."

_A Dark Mark?_

Andromeda was reeling. _No, it couldn't be. Bellatrix, a__Death Eater__? She was just eighteen. Besides, who ever heard of a female death eater? The Dark Lord had admitted her? _

Of course, Andromeda had known about the Death Eaters for a while. Her parents were not a part of it but supported it wholeheartedly. She had even been to some of their meetings, which she'd found sick and brainwashing. Andromeda had sat between her sisters, embarrassed by both of them. Narcissa had been making eyes at that Malfoy boy the entire time, and Bellatrix looked completely ecstatic and captivated by the event.

But the society wasn't the only thing captivating her older sister: the Dark Lord was a pull over Bellatrix's thoughts and dreams. In private, Bellatrix had told Andromeda that she found him attractive and alluring. That, Andromeda never could understand. The man was almost handsome, with fine features and intense eyes, but his skin was waxy, his eyes bloodshot, and on the whole he seemed eerily inhuman. As for alluring, well... Borderline sanity had always been Bellatrix's thing.

Once, Bellatrix had asked her parents about becoming a Death Eater as an adult. She presented it at dinner on a chilly night, pretending it was just a passing subject. Anyone who'd ever known her could have seen it was not just a passing subject in her mind. But Cygnus and Druella were a little less than pleased.

The Death Eaters, they protested, were a fine group and all, but it was the duty of Bellatrix's future husband to join them. She was a lady, and a Black at that, so her duty was to continue the family line and be a loyal wife.

The argument that followed was one of the most terrible ones the House of Black had ever seen. Up in her room, Narcissa later swore the glass figurines on her dresser had been shaking from the shouts below. Andromeda had lain on her bed, listening to the row beneath her feet, thinking.

_So what if Bellatrix was a Death Eater?_ Andromeda mused. _She was never meant for ladylike things anyway. She could be one of the best._

Cygnus and Druella had thought they'd won the argument, and Narcissa and Andromeda did not know who'd won. But Bellatrix, apparently, had won the fight before it was even begun.

"When were you initiated?" came Narcissa's breathless voice.

"A few weeks ago. Rodolphus and me at the same time."

"Do Mum and Dad know?"

Bellatrix snorted. "Of course not. And don't tell them, either."

"Oh Bella, why didn't you tell me earlier?"

_Yes Bella, why didn't you tell me? Your own sister? _Andromeda's heart ached.

"I was instructed to keep it a secret," Bellatrix said in a hushed tone. "You see, the Death Eaters are much more than just a society against those of impure blood. Soon, we are going to take action. Soon, we are going to right the corruption of foul blood, and soon everyone will fear the Dark Lord's name! You can't possibly understand, Cissy... Things are happening. Big things. I couldn't tell you."

Andromeda's face reflected the horror inside her. _What things are going to happen? Bella, are you going to hurt people?_

"Narcissa, you are my only trusted sister now. Please promise me you won't tell Mum and Dad, or anyone. Not even Lucius, and especially not Andromeda," Bellatrix said. "It will be our secret."

Narcissa's whisper carried to the hall where Andromeda stood. "I promise."

There was quiet. Then, without warning came Narcissa's high laugh, soft at first, then louder. Bellatrix's low one followed.

"What is it?" the elder sister giggled. "What's so funny?"

"I just remembered," choked Narcissa. "Rodolphus. I heard him talking to his younger brother yesterday out by the pond. I was in our tree."

Their climbing tree. Andromeda knew it so well.

"Eavesdropper! Go on."

"They were talking about you, and what an uncontrollable woman you are. Rodolphus, he's scared! Of your wedding night, and being your husband."

Bellatrix laughed even harder. "He actually said that?"

"Swear on my life, his exact words were, 'I have no idea what to expect from this girl.' " Narcissa chuckled.

Both sisters were helpless with giggles, but the middle sister was still listening at the door, wanting to pull away but unable to. She knew they must be embracing.

There was a sudden sniffle, and a cry of Oh!

Their laughter had suddenly turned to tears, and Andromeda's eyes widened.

"Oh Cissy I'm going to miss you so much!"

"And I'm going to miss you too!" Narcissa stammered through sobs.

The crying slowly stopped as the sisters composed themselves, and though Bellatrix and Narcissa continued chatting idly Andromeda did not hear it. She was running, running down the hallway that seemed so cold now. Tears of a different kind streamed down her face.

She thought of her friends at Hogwarts, who were always true. She thought of Ted, who loved her with his whole heart. She thought of her teachers and classmates and everyone she cared about. And there would surely be more whom she loved, co-workers and neighbors and maybe even a family.

But they would never replace the sisters she'd lost the day of Bellatrix's wedding.


End file.
